Karakoram
What was I thinking, thought Danni to herself. She couldn't believe that she had agreed to this, to accompany her father, one of the greatest Bergführen in Switzerland, to the one of the most remote regions in the Himalaya, the Karakoram, for her eleventh birthday. Sure, Danni had spent her life in the Swiss Alps, but compared to this, four thousand meters was a walk in the park.
"How are you back there, meine kleine maus?" Danni smiled weakly at her fathers use of her pet name. "I'm okay, Papa, just tired." In reality of course, she had a splitting headache and she had to concentrate hard to bring oxygen into her lungs, so there was more to it than just being exhausted. At five thousand meters, she was as high as she had ever been without a cockpit a few yards in front of her.
Their objective was Masherbrum, also known as K1, the twenty-second highest mountain in the world. Danni had been a bit put out by that choice at first, if they were going to fly five thousand miles to Asia in late October, a full month out of the climbing season, why not go for Cho Oyu, or one of the other eight thousanders? Now, actually in the Himalayas, experiencing altitude sickness for the first time in her life, she was glad that they were starting small.
Just a few miles more, her father promised, then they would rest. Her father, Paul Aldermann would meet with their friend Reinhold near the base of Masherbrum and the three of them would complete the ascent. Her father preferred the Alpine style of climbing: a straight, self-sufficient climb to the summit, bringing all needed equipment. That objective in mind, all their equipment had been shipped ahead to Hushe, a village in Pakistan just 18 kilometers from the peak.
"Hallo Reinhold!!"
"Paul!" The two men warmly embraced each other. The large bearded man took Danni up in his arms effortlessly, patting her curly golden hair. "Danni, so good to see you again, ja?"
"Ja," she exclaimed happily. "Wie gehts?"
"Well Danni, that is a good question," answered Reinhold. "The weather is expected to be good for twelve to eighteen hours, and then we get a blast of cold air from Siberia. We can rest and we can make the summit, but the descent will prove interesting I'm sure."
Following a warm meal of pasta and meatballs in the looming shadow of K1 and a marshmallow filled cup of cocoa, Danni snuggled into her down filled sleeping bag. Sleep came slowly; the altitude tended to awaken her as just she was about to sleep, but sleep did come at last.
As the alarm clock rang at four in the morning, the last thing Danni wanted to do was leave her warm cocoon, much less climb a mountain, but with gritted teeth she forced her way out of the bag. Well, she thought to herself, only 2,700 meters to go. Granted, that 2,700 meters would be straight up and didn't include the rock and ice they would have to traverse to get to the summit, followed by the more dangerous descent.
The quarter-moon shone brightly over the rocky mountainside, bringing to mind the shots of the Apollo moon landing her father had shown her when she was six, just two years before her mother had died on a business trip in Germany, a horrific multi-car accident on the Autobahn that devastated her. The three climbers made their way steadily up the peak.
Their route took them along the northeast ridge, relatively safe from the avalanches so prevalent in the summer. They reasoned that the colder temperatures would lessen the chance of weak snow, though it would increase the risk of deadly cold winds. As the first rays of the sun spiked over the horizon, they found themselves just below Camp IV, where they would stay if they were conducting a siege style expedition. Team Aldermann-Meiser would use it for breakfast. Wanting to preserve energy and what little oxygen they had in the death zone, their conversation was short and clipped.
"Tired Papa," Danni both stated and asked. "Some. You can make it." "Sure. Summit in just three hours."
The view was incredible. Stark. Awe-inspiring. Digging his cramponed feet deep into the icy snow, Reinhold pointed over his left shoulder at a taller mountain, a brutal looking pyramid about to become shrouded with darkening clouds. "K2," he said simply. "Let's go."
Danni swore that she was going to pass out any minute, but with determination she continued to press up the increasingly steep peak. The Masherbrum northeast ridge bowed inward for the final five hundred meters, with an abrupt cliff just meters below the summit. Step, breathe, ice axe left, ice axe right, step, breathe, ice axe left, breathe, ice axe right, kick in...deep...that's it girl, Papa has you.
"Just a little further Danni!!"
A few more kicks, a few more steps, and Danni was hugging her father tightly, seven thousand, two hundred and eighty-one meters above sea level, the youngest person to have made the ascent. She felt as if she were outside her body, watching, she was so tired.
A worried expression crossed Reinhold's face as he looked north. K2, the "Savage Mountain" had disappeared under the lowering clouds. Winds, already intense, seemed to be increasing in ferocity. "We had better be on our way down. Danni, sweetheart, you lead. You remember the route we took?"
"Yes?"
"Well, we are going to take the same route, but we want to go down on the inside of the ridge to protect us from the high winds." Danni bit her lip; the first five hundred meters would be completely exposed. They checked their safety rope and began their descent.
Within the first hundred meters misty grey clouds surrounded them. Reinhold encouraged her to keep going. Keep to the right, keep to the right, she reminded herself, as gale force winds pounded on her small frame. Another fifty meters and the clouds reduced her visibility to nothing. Facing out her feet tested the ice and snow before her, her body was supported by the precious ice axe that she gripped with both hands.
A gust of wind, the strength of a category three hurricane tore Danni from her ice axe and the well honed edge of the ice axe sliced the safety rope, weakening it. Most mountain disasters happen on the descent, and this would not be an exception.
"DANNI!!!" "PAPA!!!"
Another gust snapped the rope and Danni slid off the mountain, tumbling into space to the north.
Oh shit, she thought calmly.
Danni tasted blood in her mouth as the first impact on the north side of the mountain broke ribs and punctured her lung. She continued to roll down the mountainside, much of it fortunately cushioned by newly-fallen snow, but exposed rocks and boulders continued to take a toll on her clothing and the body it protected. Nausea washed over Danni as her right leg jammed into an exposed ridge near the base of the mountain, breaking it cleanly and stopping her fall. She sat up groggily, shrieking at the odd position of her damaged leg and mercifully losing consciousness.
"Young one?"
Danni stirred at the voice. Her eyes fluttered.
"Child."
Danni opened her eyes. They widened in shock. Two creatures kneeled over her. Humanoid, but unlike any human she had known. Tusk-like fangs protruded from their mouths, their lips ebony black. Their bodies were muscular, hidden under a thick pelt of ivory fur. Danni felt a heavy clawed paw caress her cheek.
"You took quite the tumble, little one. Quite fortunate to be alive, yes."
The voice was female. They were speaking English, though with a peculiar accent, which Danni spoke fluently, but how...
"Oh yes, we speak German too." This was a male voice, he continued. "But English appears to be the most common language among those that climb our mountains."
"Um," she gulped. "Wha...who are you?"
"I am Khu-la, said the female. This is Vhas-tur, my brother and mate. And to answer your unspoken question, you are now in the realm of the Yeti."
Danni sat up, looking around desperately. She appeared to be in a cave of ice, the ceiling and walls were an aquamarine blue. Pain shot through her stomach and limbs, making her groan.
"Easy Daniela, you are perfectly safe here, but your body needs time to fully recover. Our daughter and son found you and carried you here; your injuries were very nearly fatal. Fortunately you are young and our medicine is quite potent so you will make a full recovery. I fear, however that..." Vhas-tur shot his wife a warning glance and continued in her place. "We know your name from your passport." Danni felt a broad furry arm wrap around her shoulder. "Danni, I am sorry to say that the men you were with, they perished in the storm on the mountain."
"Papa!" Tears filled her eyes as she began sobbing mournfully. Reverting to her native Swiss-German, "I don't have ANYONE now!!" The two Yetis did their best to comfort the girl, but allowed her let her emotions out. The last thing the child needed was to have her emotions repressed in the face of such a trauma. Several minutes later, sniffling, she looked up at her peculiar hosts. "I lost my mother two years ago, now my father and his best friend; I don't know where anyone else is."
"You can of course stay among us, learn our ways. You have been unconscious for a fortnight and two days. I'm afraid many of our supplies were depleted caring for you, but never mind that now. You must rest."
Danni slept fitfully, waking up several times to the sobering, horrible thought that her father was gone. She hadn't even had the chance to say goodbye, yet she realized that she was in a friendly place.
"Hello."
Danni looked up. It was hard to tell in the remaining light, but a small figure stood beside her. "Hello?"
"Hello. I'm Chavala. You are living with us now?" "I supposed that I am. I'm Danni." The figure moved forward and embraced her. Danni looked at the daughters face, and at first glance it was human like hers. Then she noticed the soft fur on her cheeks and forehead.
"You don't look like your parents do you?" "Well, no. I'm not grown up yet. My brother Jen-tur though, he's in the Transition, and he's looking different every day. Um, I never met a human before." "I never met Yetis before today. Really, I..." "You thought they were local legends in these mountains, just like the legends of Bigfoot and Sasquatch. And we're also called the Abobibble Snowmen," mispronouncing "abominable." "Daddy will explain everything to you."
A few more hours of sleep and Danni felt ready to get up. She winced slightly at the pain, but it was nothing compared to the day before, and thanked the heavens that she had been unconscious the past sixteen days.
"Danni, come in," commanded Vhas-tur. "Sit with Chavala and Jen-tur." She did so, sitting on a small animal pelt surrounding a large one. Chavala hadn't been kidding about her brother, thick white fur covered his body like his parents and his fangs were beginning to extend out of his mouth.
"Danni, have you enjoyed our hospitality so far?"
"You saved my life; I don't know how I can repay you." She meant it too, if there was someway to return their kindness, she would gratefully do so.
"Well, I want you to hold that thought whilst I tell you more about our people. There are about a thousand of us in the world, scattered and living in woods and mountains on five continents. We're similar to human beings, perfectly sentient, but we're not the same; Homo bonmanche, perhaps. We have no desire for cities, preferring to keep to ourselves and our families, but we keep in touch with other Yeti tribes. I'm afraid that this is all that remains of ours.
"Danni, you are a child and what's more you have come to our family unwittingly, suffering a devastating loss in the process. The fact still remains that you have imposed yourself on this family. If I give you the chance to make payment - part of which you cannot refuse, would you take it?"
"Of course!"
"Good, that's wonderful. The first part of the payment is that you must not tell the outer world what you know of us when you return to civilization. We shall continue to live our lives as we so desire."
"You have my word."
"Thank you. The second part of the payment, the payment you must make, is that you shall bear the children of my son, at least a son and a daughter."
"But I just turned eleven!"
"Only a number, merely your age in years. You will be able to accept my son's seed, much sooner than you think."
Danni felt Khu-la's paw on her shoulder. "Come with me, child." She lifted the Swiss girl, cradling her in her arms and taking her to the "kitchen." A small cup was removed from the icy shelf, a cup filled with a thick orange liquid. "Drink this," she asked gently.
Danni did as she was asked. A delicious creamy liquid flowed into her mouth, teasing her tongue. It was a combination of some kind of fruit with meat she had never tasted. She swallowed the strange mixture, looking questioningly at the creature that had given it to her.
"It is a combination of berries and animal meats that combine to form a powerful hormonal trigger and aphrodisiac. I suggest that you remove your clothes and return to bed, you're in for an interesting night."
Danni felt her stomach began to gurgle as she rushed to the furs making up her bed, undressing as she did so. Already she could sense that something was happening to her. Her chest began to feel warmer, more tender. She looked down and saw that there was definitely some swelling there. A shuddering gasp escaped her lips and she squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to believe what was happening; she was developing breasts.
"Oh my God," she whispered. She was no fool, she knew perfectly well what to expect, but it was still unnerving to see the golf ball sized lumps of fat steadily expanding. She felt a tickling sensation under her arms and between her legs and was dismayed to see tiny blonde hairs making their appearance and starting to grow. Danni moaned loudly as her body was seized by an intense ache, she fought vainly to avoid crying as bones and muscles lengthened and developed.
"Godddddd!!!" Danni screamed in agony, her voice deepening. Gasping for breath she looked down at her body. Her chest now bore a pair of breasts that would fill a B-cup bra. Soft golden hairs continued to grow in each armpit and wiry curls were starting to hide the skin of her groin. New hairs sprouted on her legs. Her pelvis cracked, forcing her to moan in the feminine but husky voice she would have for the rest of her life.
A few more minutes, and the eleven year old girl was gone. Danielle now wore the body of a nineteen year old young woman. Her golden curls grew down to her knees, knees that were themselves sparsely covered with two inch long hairs. Her chest proudly sported two firm breasts, breasts that would need the support of a 34-C bra. Bushy blonde hair filled both armpits and between her legs a coarse mat of pubes covered her lower abdomen, hiding her developed womanhood and broad hips that would easily support an unborn child. No longer a little girl, she stood five feet and seven inches, a healthy 55 kg.
"And now Danielle, you are ready to bear the seed of my son," came a voice behind her.
"W-what?" Her voice was shaky, uncomfortable in her grown-up body.
"No need to rush child," said Vhas-tur. "Just spend time with my son, but you will fulfill your agreement beginning tonight." Danni swallowed hard as she realized that she was going to be made to have sex with one of these strange creatures and that it would make her pregnant. She quickly looked around for her clothes and quickly realized that those clothes were designed for someone over a foot shorter than she was now. Danni felt naked and trapped, there was no way to civilization if she even knew where it was, she'd likely be stoned for her temerity to show up naked in one of their holy cities.
The morning and afternoon quickly faded into evening. Danni listened and talked, her mind marveling at the intelligence and ingenuity of these creatures. They were hunters and stargazers they said, now that winter was approaching, they would dedicate most of their time to the stars, having stored up sufficient supplies for the winter. They had surreptitiously published several papers in astronomy, their observations derived from an ingeniously designed telescope made from discarded items, the multifaceted lens made directly out of the sand and a furnace. The evening ended with Vhas-tur pointing out the orbits of the planets amidst the bright stars, a night sky like she had never seen in Switzerland.
Danni felt Jen-tur stoke her hand. "It's time," he said simply. Her initial thought was to resist but she allowed herself to be taken to the pelts of his bed. She hesitated, and then tentatively lay down on the bed, her breathing shallow. Jen-tur joined her in bed, caressing her curls. Despite her apprehension, Danni felt herself grow moist. The Yeti continued to caress her body with his paws, the shaggy white fur tickling her. He licked her face, his inch-long fangs teasing her cheek. Slowly, Jen-tur moved over to her, between her legs and slowly pushed his length inside her. Danni shuddered, but with shaking arms, pulled the monster towards her. Fear turned to pleasure as the furry monster made love to her, a pure animalistic pleasure that she could never have imagined. It was a pleasure that only lasted a few short intense minutes, but Danni screamed in ecstasy as her body was wracked by a massive orgasm, just as Jen-tur's potent semen lodged in her womb. The two fell asleep in each others arms.
It was not long after that Danni noticed that her breasts were tender. Though she had them for less than two weeks, they were somewhat more sensitive than usual. Also it seemed much more difficult to get up in the morning. She attributed the tenderness and the fatigue to the nightly dalliances she'd been having with Jen-tur, but even after a "girls night" with Chavala, she didn't feel that much better. She would start to feel sick in the morning on a daily basis.
"You are pregnant, Danni," said Khu-la simply. "All the problems you mention, they fit the pattern perfectly.
And so it was. Danni wondered what the child would look like. Half human, half yeti? Still it would be her child; she already felt the maternal instincts inside her. Powerful hormones began to take effect; her breasts began swelling, the areolas darkening. Her belly began to swell.
A month after she had awakened in the home of this strange family, Danni awoke to go to the bathroom. Yawning and shaking her head, she looked casually in the mirror. She gasped, squeezed her eyes shut and looked again.
Her thin golden eyebrows were now thick white eyebrows. Leaning in closer, she felt the growth with her fingers. Her eyebrows were softer than before, there was just more to them. She shrugged; figuring that it must be another effect of what was filling her belly.
As usual, she helped Khu-la maintain the home, tasks that were easily accomplished, followed by long discussions of what her life has been like in Switzerland. "Danni," asked Khu-la suddenly, "have your eyebrows always been white?"
"No, they were blonde before. I guess it's just that I'm pregnant with your grandchild." Khu-la shook her shaggy head. "Pregnancy would make them thicker, but I doubt that they would change color." She looked closer at Danni. "Your lips are darker too..."
"What??" Danni leaped up, running to the mirror. It was true. Her pale lips had darkened to a light blue. She felt them with her fingers; they were their normal sensitivity, so it couldn't be frostbite. What the hell, thought Danni to herself.
The next day, Danni awoke early. Going to the bathroom, she looked in the mirror and screamed in shock. Her lips had darkened to black. Her eyebrows were now broad and white and now her nose was getting dark as well. She removed the snow cat skin that served as a gown, the one bit of clothing she had. Danni fought back tears, her pubic hair was now a carpet of thick white fur. She whimpered, blinked hard, and looked again.
The patch was growing.
"I was afraid this might happen." Danni turned and saw Khu-la behind her. "Oh, Danni, I was so grateful that we might have a chance at grandchildren, I ignored the possibility of what it might do to you." Danni's eyes widened, terrified.
"I'm...," she could not finish. "You're becoming a Yeti, Danni. Oh, sweetheart, I'm SO sorry."
"No," whined Danni..."please, no!"
It began to accelerate. Danni felt a strange tightening in her hands, and screamed as her fingers shrank and became stubby. Thick pads developed and fur appeared, starting to spread up her arms, meeting the fur creeping down from her shoulders. Her fingernails fell out, pushed aside by fierce-looking claws. Danni's hands were now paws.
"Nein," she sobbed.
Her feet swelled, lengthening, becoming broader, more suited to foraging and hunting on cold and icy plains and glaciers. Razor-like claws would give her a good purchase on the ice. Thick white fur now began to sprout furiously over her legs, forming a three layered coat that would keep her warm in the winter and cool in the summer months. It tickled her as it grew long and shaggy, meeting up with the expanding patch that used to be her pubic hair.
"Oh god...uhh...uhh...goddd!!!"
Her breasts swelled larger than before, as they developed a soft fuzz, rapidly developing into soft thick fur. Muscles bulged with inner strength. With tears in her eyes, Danni saw her eyes darken from gray to black, this blackness spreading over her whole eye. Her ears grew long, with pointed tips. Fur covered her breasts, her back, her neck and began to encroach onto her face. Her teeth grew long and pointed - like tusks, her golden hair fell out, replaced by shaggy white fur.
Danni howled in horror. Khu-la joined her sympathetically, embracing the new beast.
"Danni, Danni...it will be all right. You have not regressed, you have advanced."
"H-how...w-what do you mean?"
"Danni, the Yeti are the NEXT stage in human evolution. Every human now has the capacity to experience what you just went through, the contact with my son was just the trigger in you. Colder days are approaching Danni, a new ice age. Only the Yeti will have the physical resistance and mental capacity to survive the millennia to come. When the world's mean temperature falls past a certain point, every man, woman and child will share your experience."
"I'll be like this forever then?"
Khu-la nodded. "Your existence as a human being and in the human world is over. People would never accept us for now. But don't worry, my husband and I have discovered several objects in the heavens that are well capable of triggering that temperature drop that shall evolve all mankind."
Danni collapsed in shock, her new body trembling with sobs.
______________________________________________________________
John Appleton stretched, sighing in disgust at his empty coffee cup. A technician for the past four years, he'd finally saved enough money to head back to college and get his doctorate in geology, with a concentration in seismology and volcanology. He'd start in the spring at UCLA, and probably use a large hunk of what he learned here at the Yellowstone caldera for his dissertation. He chuckled. It looked like he'd be leaving just as things were getting interesting. There had been a few events recently, small tremors, geysers that had been as regular as a metronome were not functioning anymore, and silent geysers were now tooting at full blast.
"Fuck it," he said tiredly. He got up to refill his coffee.
"BEEP-BEEP-BEEP-BEEEEEEEEEE!"
"Ah, what is it now, ya liar?" The seismic indicator, a low-tech but relatively effective computer program wired into a network of seismometers, extensometers, magnetometer, and tiltometers wasn't nearly as reliable as they'd like. Still, it was his job to examine and report. He looked casually at the result.
John Appleton dropped his cup, it broke into three pieces on the linoleum. He picked up the phone, fingers trembling he called his boss.
"Sean, it's Jack here. Could you come in here? We've got a tremor...yeah, it's harmonic."